Online self-report questionnaire on computer work-related exposure (OSCWE): validity and internal consistency

Abstract

Objective: To develop an online, self-report questionnaire on computer work-related exposure (OSCWE) and to determine the internal consistency, face and content validity of the questionnaire. Material and Method: The online, self-report questionnaire was developed to determine the risk factors related to musculoskeletal disorders in computer users. It comprised five domains: personal, work-related, work environment, physical health and psychosocial factors. The questionnaire’s content was validated by an occupational medical doctor and three physical therapy lecturers involved in ergonomic teaching. Twenty-five lay people examined the feasibility of computeradministered and the user-friendly language. The item correlation in each domain was analyzed by the internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha; α). Results: The content of the questionnaire was considered congruent with the testing purposes. Eight hundred and thirty-five computer users at the PTT Exploration and Production Public Company Limited registered to the online self-report questionnaire. The internal consistency of the five domains was: personal (α = 0.58), work-related (α = 0.348), work environment (α = 0.72), physical health (α = 0.68) and psychosocial factor (α = 0.93). Conclusion: The findings suggested that the OSCWE had acceptable internal consistency for work environment and psychosocial factors. The OSCWE is available to use in population-based survey research among computer office workers.